India News: Issuing a strong rebuttal to finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s argument that the Modi government would not cut excise duty on petrol and diesel fo
Petrol price increased by 35 paise per litre for the second day in a row in the national capital to Rs take it to Rs 98.46 a litre. Similarly, the price of the fuel in the other key metros also continued the upward trend with petrol being sold at Rs 99.49 per litre in Chennai. In Mumbai and Kolkata, the fuel was sold for Rs 104.56 and Rs 98.30 per litre, respectively. With the rise, petrol price has reached very close to hitting the century mark all across the country extending the scope of historic high prices that had already made the fuel rate cross the Rs 100 per litre-mark in certain cities and towns of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh.
Picture used for representational purpose only
MUMBAI: Fuel prices are at an all-time high in Mumbai, with diesel breaching the Rs 90-mark. With several hikes totalling Rs 24 in the past 13 months, diesel was retailed at Rs 90.11 a litre and petrol at Rs 98.65 in the city. Petrol and diesel prices were hiked by 29 paise and 36 paise per litre, respectively
In neighbouring Thane and Navi Mumbai too, petrol and diesel prices reached a record high of Rs 98.77 and Rs 90.23 a litre.
Five districts across Maharashtra have petrol prices over Rs 100 per litre even as political parties, including Shiv Sena and NCP, are opposing the fuel hikes by the Centre. Amravati has the highest diesel rate in the state at Rs 91.57, while Parbhani has the highest petrol rate at Rs 101.02 a litre.
Price stability must be maintained even as steps to boost demand are taken
The latest retail inflation and industrial output data from the National Statistical Office (NSO) offer some relief from the pall of gloom cast by the relentless second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Provisional headline inflation slowed to a three-month low of 4.29% in April, helped by softer food prices and a statistical base effect. The rate using an imputed index for the year-earlier period was 7.22%. A separate NSO release showed March industrial output jumped by 22.4%, benefiting again from the fact that the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) had posted an 18.7% contraction in March 2020, when the economy was halted by the start of a nationwide lockdown. A closer look at the inflation data reveals a substantial cooling in the prices of cereals, milk and milk products, vegetables, and pulses and products. While both cereals and vegetables saw a deflationary trend widen to -2.96% and -14.2%, respective